Move Comes a Day After Tokyo-Based Exchange Mt. Gox Halted Trading

TOKYO—Japan's chief government spokesman and a member of the central bank's policy board said authorities were looking into the regulation of bitcoin, a day after Tokyo-based bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox shut its website and halted trading.

Compared with regulators in many other advanced economies, Japanese regulators have been relatively silent on bitcoin. But Wednesday, after Mt. Gox's abrupt closure underscored the risks of a virtual...

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Bitcoin Site Mt. Gox Goes Dark; Regulator Sounds Alarm

Mt. Gox, the large bitcoin trading exchange, has all but disappeared. Marketwatch's Chuck Jaffe spoke to one regulator who's sounding an alarm on the virtual currency. Photo: Getty Images.